Moments
by MissMisinterpreted
Summary: There are so many moments between them. Simple moments, painful moments, long, short, easy, hard- and they're grateful for every single one. [SoMa] [Rated T for future content bc I will forget to change the rating :)] [This will follow manga-world]
1. Parties and Pianos

**Moments**

* * *

**The First:**

**Parties and Pianos**

* * *

Yeah, parties are not Maka's thing.

She's never been the kind of person who's been able to enjoy a crowded room with little time in between words to think. It's how she's always been, even since she was a child. Her mother would often tell her stories of a mini-Maka clinging to her leg and hiding her face when a stranger greeted her. Her mother would tell her that mini-Maka loved books and learning, slightly different from the children who would much rather go outside to play.

In other words, Maka has always been a bit boring. She knows this about herself, and she's accepted it.

But here, in Shibusen, she would learn to be something more than boring ole Maka. She is going to be great. That path to greatness starts with finding a partner...

Except she doesn't like parties.

And this party is about meeting meisters and weapons alike... so finding a partner starts there in terms of making connections...

Things are already looking a bit grim for her.

Maka takes a sip of her sparkling cider as she wanders the halls of her home for the next few years. The architecture is beautiful, and it reminds her of a castle she once visited in Germany. Gothic and gorgeous. Long hallways, exquisit paintings, chandeliers that look more expensive than a year's worth of her rent- it's amazing here. She has been so lucky to be accepted.

Although, with her parent's celebrity status here: she doubts she would've been rejected. The Shinigami loves her. She grew up knowing a lot of the staff and a few of the students.

Maka takes a hard right down a hallway she's never been down before. Her eyes trace paintings, and some music echoes in her mind that she hums along to. The smooth jazz played on a piano is a nice change of pace from the frighteningly fast music in the dining room.

Wait, can she hear the music?

She stops humming and realizes quickly that the jazz music is not in her head. It's gotten louder the further she's traveled down this hallway, and it makes curiousity sprout within her. Where is it coming from? Surely Shinigami doesn't have a speaker system here...

She travels further down the hallway and, sure enough, the music grows louder. She follows the path and takes a left, abandoning her glass of cider on a rail when she needs to hike up her skirt to climb a set of stairs.

Maka draws nearer and nearer to the mournful sound of the music. Eventually, she reaches an open wooden door, and she peers inside.

A boy sits at a piano, his hands dancing across the keyboard deftly. She takes notice of nothing other than the way the music reflects in her soul. It's suffering, desperate... but it's hopeful too and oddly optimistic. His talent shines through his quick movements- he knows he's doing well, but there's an air of indifference about it. Does he not enjoy making music?

His song continues for a few moments before he ends on a light chord. Maka can't help herself as she claps, the boy sitting up straighter. It's only now that she takes notice of his appearance as he turns himself around to face her.

Deep crimson eyes stare back at her, a white eyebrow raised against tanned skin. His similarly white hair sticks up at odd angles, although Maka finds it cute more than anything else. He wears a black pinstripe suit with a white undershirt and matching crimson tie. He seems to get over his surprise (if he even felt that) and smirks at her, showing off his impressively sharp teeth.

"Well hey there." He says smoothly, seeming to relax in her presence. "I didn't hear ya' come in."

"That was beautiful." She tells him, clasping her hands in front of her body. "I've never been a huge fan of jazz... but that was absolutely... it was amazing." Now he looks surprised. His smirk drops off his face, and his eyes widen ever so slightly- it's almost unnoticable.

"Glad you liked it." He replies, his deep voice reverberating through the room. "That was me." Maka smiles despite herself.

"Then you must be amazing." She says, watching him chuckle before standing up. He crosses the room to her, and she takes note that he's slightly taller than her even though he's slouching.

"Soul Eater," he says, holding his hand out for her to shake. She takes it.

"I'm Maka Albarn." She replies. "It's nice to meet you, Soul."

"Likewise." He says, his eyes running up and down her front. She gets the feeling that he's not being weird about it, but she blushes anyway. So she shakes off the feeling.

"What are you doing here at Shibusen?" She asks, the male leaning against the opposite side of the doorway.

"To figure out what I want to do with my life." He tells her, the girl nodding. "I'm a weapon."

"You are?" She would've guessed he was a meister, but she supposes you can never know just by looking at someone. "What kind of weapon are you?"

"Demon Scythe." He replies, and it's music to her ears.

"I'm a Scythe meister." She muses, the male smirking at the information as he folds his arms across his chest.

"Cool." He says, just as smoothly as before. "I like you." The words make her eyes widen, and she stifles a giggle behind her hand. "Let's be partners."

"Just like that?" She wonders aloud, although she isn't opposed to it.

"Just like that." He responds simply, pushing off the wall and walking backwards toward where they both came from. "Is that a yes, or a no?"

"It's a yes!" She says, although a certain annoyance creeps up within her unexpectedly. "But usually you ask in a more formal way." His eyebrows furrow as she catches up to him easily, the two side-by-side as they make it to the end of the hall.

"Why does it need to be formal?" He questions, the girl sighing.

"Because!" A pause passes between them, and she shoots him a small glare. "Just because!"

"Well that's not a very good excuse." His hands find his pockets and the girl rolls her eyes.

"What have I gotten myself into?" She mutters.

"A very cool partnership." He states with confidence. Maka lets out a small breath at that. He's probably right.

"It better start getting cool real quick-" He bumps her with his hip.

"It already is. We're in it."

"That's not a very good excuse." She echoes from earlier, hearing him chuckle. It makes her heart pound, and she shoots him a smile. He returns it and Maka gets the feeling that maybe parties aren't the worst thing in the world.

Sometimes you can meet some pretty cool people.


	2. Couches and Thinkers

**Moments**

* * *

**The One Hundred and Fifty-Third:**

**Couches and Thinkers**

* * *

Maka wakes up to the sound of footsteps.

The sandy-blonde groans, her mood immediately souring as she looks at the clock on her nightstand. It's not even one in the morning, and she's awake. Why does her life suck?

She sits up with a yawn, hearing more footsteps that couldn't be anyone other than her partner, Soul Eater. Even though they've been living together for almost a year now, he can't figure out how to walk quietly in their apartment.

Instead of letting it go, like she usually would, she shoves her duvet off her body. This is it. This is the final straw. He _knows _there's a test in Stein's tomorrow and they _both _need their sleep. This is completely out of line! Even for him!

She rolls out of bed, going to her door and ripping it open. She opens her mouth to cuss out her partner, only to find him sitting on their couch- shirtless and looking as though he's just seen a ghost. Her eyes are drawn to his chest where his scar looks irritated and inflamed as if he had been clawing at it. Then, she makes eye connect with him. He's obviously trying to hide his tension, but she knows him better than that.

All the fight drains out of her, and it's replaced with guilt. He's been having nightmares ever since he was allowed to return home two weeks ago after his recovery from Chrona. Her heart feels heavy. He never likes to show his true emotions, and she always has to drag it out of him.

She wonders if he were to answer honestly if he would blame her. She certainly blames herself.

"Hey." She says softly, feeling the tension in his soul as their wavelengths interact. "Are you okay?" He nods instantly, and she almost sighs aloud at the blatent lie.

"Yeah, of course." He leans back on the couch, not fooling her for even a moment. "'Just can't sleep is all." Maka knows better, and she gets the feeling he knows that.

"I can't sleep either." She says, although he doesn't look like he believes her. She crosses the room to sit next to him on the couch. She sits close, reaching for the remote control that sits on the coffee table and clicking on their television. She leans against the back of the couch as she puts on a kids' network.

"Cartoons?" He mutters, the girl nodding.

"They're good for the soul." She replies. He doesn't say anything back to her, so she keeps it on.

For a few minutes they sit in silence and watch a mouse chase a cat around a house. The tension slowly drains from her partner, but Maka thinks that if they were even closer it would help him more. So she closes the small distance between them, laying her head on his shoulder and curling her legs up on his lap. He freezes at the bold move, and he hesitantly adjusts. His arm comes to settle around her shoulders and he leans his cheek against her head, his other arm coming to rest on her curled up legs.

They've never cuddled before, but Maka supposes there's a first time for everything. She likes the feeling of being close to him, and it makes her heart pound in a way she can hardly understand. She realizes his wavelength has settled down, and he pulls her a little tighter against him. She would almost mistake his soul to be peaceful if she didn't know him so well.

"You're always surprising me." Soul murmurs, the teen shutting her eyes as she brings an arm up to rest on his bare shoulder. She has the good grace to blush, but the feeling dissipates when her cheek presses against a small divot in his skin from his scar. Guilt flushes through her once more, and she feels a resolve settle in her heart.

"Soul," she says seriously, "I'm going to become stronger." He stays silent at her words, and she thinks if he speaks, she might lose her sudden confidence. "I won't let anything like this happen to you ever again. You can count on me." He chuckles under his breath, the teen feeling him peck her on the head. She can feel a blush work its way up on her cheeks, but she isn't embarrassed. She likes it.

"I know." He tells her smoothly. "It was our first time facing an enemy... like that." He seems to collect his thoughts, rubbing her back slightly. "You're already stronger, and we both can get there. Together." Maka smiles, her heart warming to degrees that shouldn't be possible. She snuggles into him more, her nose pressing against his neck.

He doesn't blame her, _and _he believes she can grow stronger.

"You're amazing." Maka says without thinking, wondering immediately afterwards why her voice is so... breathy. It's probably because of her pounding heart and thousand-degree cheeks (by the way, the hell is she reacting like this!? It's just Soul!).

"I know." He repeats, the teen giggling as she begins drifting off to sleep in the arms of her best friend.

Soul holds her close.

As soon as her breaths even out, and her heart stops pounding like a fricken freight train, he allows himself to run a hand through his hair.

Holy shit, that was too close.

He thought he was about to spill his entire life story to her- like, seriously! What was he thinking?

Oh right, he wasn't. As proven by the fact that he _kissed _her on the head! What has gotten into him?

Well, he knows the answer to that to: a tiny little, itty-bitty, teensy-weensy crush on his partner. A tiny little, itty-bitty, teensy-weensy crush that will go away before the end of the week.

Seriously, his feelings are getting in the way of him being cool. It's her fault anyway, what with her always caring about him and asking how he was doing or whatever. She's just so damn considerate and kind when it comes to dealing with him. Although, he could totally do without the Maka chops.

However, as he holds her in his arms, her soft puffs of air hitting his throat and her course hand burning his skin in the best way, he feels at peace. He wonders why they've never been this close before outside of combat, and now that he's here he doesn't ever want her to leave his arms. It's impossible now. She should've thought of the consequences before getting here.

He sighs to himself. But she _wasn't _thinking of the consequences. Even on that day when they faced Chrona, she was prepared to die instead of using him to defend herself. It was the reason that he threw himself in front of her, because she was about to do the very same thing. She puts so much pressure on herself to only ever protect him; she forgets about all those moments when she has put herself on the line to keep him safe. The one time he returns the favor is the time where she beats herself up.

"Idiot." He murmurs, shutting his eyes and burying his nose in her hair. She should realize that it's his job to protect her, not the other way around. Not in their world, at least. Weapons die for their mesiters... and that's that.

His nightmare just reflects the part of him he hates the most: the part of himself that he can't control. The part the tells him to flee into the madness and abandon what he knows is the most important thing. Maka.

So he picks his partner up bridal style and carries her off to her room. She was too nice to come out and comfort him like that, but she needs to get a good night's sleep for Stein's test tomorrow... a test he was going to flunk out on real hard.

But then he gets a great idea. A smile spreads across his lips as he slips out of her room, and he stalks back to his own. He grabs his yellow-black jacket and headband and his textbook. There is no way he's getting to sleep tonight, so he might as well get to writing down his cheat sheet!

He laughs into the night, thinking of his awesome partner and his awesome brain.

* * *

_Maka glares at Soul._

_ "Maka... help me..."_

_ "No, you cheater!" _


	3. Basketball and Laughter

**Moments**

* * *

**The One Hundred and Fifty-Ninth:**

**Basketball and Laughter**

* * *

Maka shuts her eyes tightly as she focuses. A sweat breaks out on her forehead, and she feels the earth still under her feet despite the enormity of the situation. She grips her weapon and opens her eyes.

"Too slow!" BlackStar suddenly shouts, snatching the basketball out of her hands before she's able to take the free throw shot. He easily dunks the ball, and Maka's eye twitches.

"You dumbass! We're on the same team!" She yells as he parades around, touting his amazingness to the group.

"Be grateful I, the great BlackStar, showed you how to ball!" He tells her, suddenly hanging off the hoop and swinging precariously back and forth. Maka throws her arms up in the air with indignation as Tsubaki has the gall to laugh at her expense.

"I mean, is he wrong?" Soul stage whispers to Kidd and Patty, the two shaking their heads in response as the scythe meister puffs up with anger.

"Okay! That's it! Someone teach me how to play!" She commands, only to be instantly ignored by everyone as they launch back into the game. She stands with her hands up placating, feeling a certain amount of dread overtake her.

Something tells her she's going to have to go on that date with her papa... oh Lord Death, how terrible!

"Maka, catch!" Tsubaki calls out to her. Maka barely reacts in time to catch the basketball as it ends up in his hands. She doesn't know what to do, and Patty is barreling towards her. She needs to do something!

With very little effort, she attempts to shoot at the basket... only for there to be not nearly enough power. The ball arches pathetically and bounces lamely off of BlackStar's head. Maka instantly droops at the laughter of her peers and decides that death is preferable to playing this dumb game.

"It's okay, Maka." Tsubaki says, even though BlackStar is throwing a fit at being 'attacked by his own team.' "You did your best!" Soul laughs loudly at that, and Maka has half the mind to glare at him. He is currently in his own fit of amusement on the ground, holding his stomach and appearing unable to stop his laughter.

Maka smiles. He hasn't laughed like that in a long time. It makes her happy to see him able to smile so care-freely after everything that went down this past week.

"Well, you know what, whatever! Make your own dinner tonight!" Maka yells at her partner to feign annoyance and embarrassment. She stomps off to the side, but her arm is caught by him. She turns to face him, mirth in his eyes even though his laughter is subdued to intermittent chuckles.

"Come on, you're fine." He says, dragging her back out to the court. "Maybe you should try again." He and Kidd dissolve into laughter once more. Maka is unable to hide her own joy as she cracks a grin, but she rolls her eyes in an attempt to keep up appearances.

"I'm only playing for ten more minutes!" She declares to the group. "Then I'm done." Tsubaki and Patty cheer while BlackStar continues his tyrad of how she was out to get him because he was more powerful than her.

Those ten minutes turned into two hours, and by the end of it, Maka was absolutely done. After being forced to ask her papa to hang out with her, she made a vow never to play basketball again. It's an easy vow because she's sure that no one in her friend group would ever make the same mistake of having her on their team. It was a for-sure lose situation.

As Soul and she walk home, her mind wanders. Today was fun, despite her fumbling at every available opportunity. She wonders just how many of these days they all have left together- just being teenagers and having a good time. With the revival of the Kishin and the threat of madness hanging over their heads, how are they supposed to just let go?

Her thoughts are interrupted when Soul suddenly grabs her hand. Her heart leaps into her throat at the simple action, the male keeping his gaze forward.

"You think too much." He mutters, not elaborating as they continue on to their apartment.

She considers his words before letting out a small huff of air.

"One of us has to." She replies, much to his annoyance it seems because he stops in his tracks. He faces her, those dark eyes staring right through her.

"Just enjoy today." He advises seriously. "Don't think about tomorrow yet. It's far away." The corners of his lips turn up slightly, and he leans towards her. "The night is young, let's watch a movie." He pulls her along then as her body heats up. Why did he have to ask her like that? He's always up in her space nowadays; not that she minds, of course.

She likes being close to him. What that means, she doesn't really want to admit to herself yet. It'll go away, these little rushes of heat and impulses to be closer than what is acceptable for two friends. She just has to allow herself to feel them and then realize that Soul is meant for someone much better than herself. He deserves it.

"Right." She says thoughtfully, remembering his words. He always manages to keep her on a healthy mindset. "Thanks, Soul." He shrugs, squeezing her hand and before running the opposite through his hair.

"It's whatever." He tells her. "Just do me a favor and never be on my team for basketball." Maka wacks him in the shoulder even as he cackles. She wishes she had a book to chop him with!

However, the sound of his joy makes her feel happy, and she lets him laugh.

She would get back at him one of these days.


	4. Blair and Slips

**Moments**

* * *

**The Six Hundred and First:**

**Blair and Slips**

* * *

Okay, so here's the deal. Soul has realized pretty quickly that this whole 'Crush-on-Maka' thing is not going away. As evidenced by the fact that he still acts like a prebubescent boy who is seeing boobs for the first time every single fucking time she enters a room.

It's even worse because they live together, so she's entering a room he's in all the fucking time. He isn't sure what he's supposed to do about this, because _come on_, he can't just stop living with her! He also can't just stop being all hadnsy, either! She doesn't seem to mind which puts him even more on edge. The urge to pin her against the wall (or the counter, or the bed, or the shower- anywhere works) and just have his way with her is too strong sometimes.

She probably thinks of him as a cuddly best friend, and that _sucks_. He wants to be the cool protective boyfriend who scares everyone away from his girl! He can be really scary when he wants to be, and he knows that Maka doesn't get freaked out by it. She would find it endearing!

Soul groans loudly at his thoughts, pulling his black headband over his eyes.

When did he fall so hard? He hates this: pining over a girl who is probably not the least bit interested in him. At least not in a romantic sense. She's a great friend- his best friend -and he doesn't want to do anything to screw that up. But recently that line of thinking hasn't been enough to put her out of his head. Everything about her gets his motor running, which is sorta gross, but he can't help it!

He groans loudly again, sinking down on the couch. Maybe he's just really horny or something. He hasn't been with a girl since... since before Maka. Then he partnered with her and suddenly no one measures up to how he really feels about her. He wants someone he can trust and who knows him, and his partner fulfills both of those criteria.

There's weight in his lap suddenly, and Soul swallows thickly as he dares to peek out from under his headband. He makes eye contact with Blair in her cat form and raises an eyebrow at her.

"What do you want?" He asks, the cat-woman-witch-thing smiling wickedly at him.

"I came to see why Soul-kun was groaning~" She says suggestively, causing him to immediately think about his stupidly cute partner. "Can Blair help you with anything?" She purrs, the teen pushing her off his lap and feeling a spike of amusement when she thuds against the floor.

"No." He says, the cat suddenly transforming into a very provocatively dressed woman. He swallows thickly when she grabs his knees and forces his legs apart, very much feeling like he was being taken advantage of. "Stop that, you crazy cat!" He swats at her and she dodges, giggling wildly as she jumps back onto his lap to wrap herself around him.

"Why don't you tell Blair what's on your mind?" She asks, running her hands through his hair as he tries in vain to shove her away from him. Her grip around his neck is a bit too strong, unfortunately.

"If you get off of me, I'll tell you! Jeez!" He says, still attempting to push her away from him. She seems to consider his words for a moment before she allows him to shove her away. She poofs back into a cat as she lands easily on the floor. Her eyes turn more curious now that he's said that.

"Okay! What's on your mind?" She asks as he stands up, crossing over to Maka's room just to make sure she isn't home. He watched her leave earlier this morning after breakfast to go study with Tsubaki, but he can never be too sure.

He peers inside her room and doesn't find her, so he jogs to the bathroom to make sure she isn't in there either. Once he's secured the perimeter, he travels back to the cat who has gone back to being a woman. This time she has clothes on. She sits in Maka's arm chair just next to the couch (although it hasn't been used much recently since now they cuddle so much...).

"Does this have something to do with Maka-chan?" Blair asks, causing Soul to sigh heavily.

"Yeah." He says, thinking that perhaps the woman would be able to lend some sort of advice to him. He tries to be cool as he speaks slowly: "I think I like her."

"Well I should hope you like her, you guys live together! I can't imagine living with someone I didn't like!" Blair tells him, causing the teen to want to slam his head against the wall.

"Well I can, I live it everyday with you!" He responds haughtily. "I'm talking about having a crush on her, idiot!" Blair has half the decency to look offended, although she becomes very happy soon after.

"Aw! You do? You guys would be so cute, you know-" He feels his face grow hot and hopes to the Shinigami himself that he isn't visibly blushing. "_Aw Soul-kun's face is all red!_" He groans and stands up to walk across the room away from the woman who giggles. She continues to talk after a moment of him pacing. "Why don't you go on an ask her out? It's obvious that she likes you back. I doubt she'd say no."

"That's not what I'm worried about." Well, it was actually a huge part of what he was worried about, but he has a confident reputation to uphold. "I'm worried about the future. What if we break up after a while and she wants a new partner? She's too cool to let go." Blair pauses, tapping her chin with her fingertips.

"You know, I wouldn't worry about that." She tells him, winking. "Life's short. You should enjoy it with the people who make you feel good." He considers her words, trying to keep his face as deadpan as possible as they strike a chord somewhere deep within himself.

"_Is that why you chose that girl?"_

_ "No! It's not like that with Maka."_

They both knew he was lying.

Soul shakes the thought from his head when the door to their apartment opens.

"I'm back!" Maka calls out as she steps inside the foyer. Blair turns back into a cat and bounds over to his meister.

"I missed you! Soul and I were just talking about ya'!" She tattles on him instantly, and he suddenly has the urge to murder her.

"You were? All good things?" She inquires, although it doesn't sound like she cares too much. However, he cares, and he wants her to know it wasn't anything bad.

"I was just asking her what you might want to eat tonight," he improvises. "I'll cook." She looks surprised but grateful, and his chest swells with pride.

"Anything's fine, you don't have to cook if you really don't want to," she tells him, although he rolls his eyes in response.

"I can do it once in a while." He waves her off, trying to look cool and lean against the counter. The image is almost instantly ruined as he slips on water and falls onto his elbow. She laughs suddenly and his pride fizzles away completely. So much for looking cool, he's just a chum around her.

"You're sweet, Soul." She crosses over to him, setting Blair on the counter top as she leans into his space. A lightning bolt of adoration strikes him in the heart when she kisses him on the cheek, the girl breezing past him towards their bathroom as he remains frozen in his spot. "I'm just going to take a shower really quick!"

The sound of the door closing jarrs him back to the present as he slaps a hand on his cheek and whips around to the piece of wood that separates him from the girl he's going to marry. He just decided this.

"Way to stay calm!" Blair taunts, and Soul groans for the umpteenth time as he drops his hand to his side.

"Shut up." He mutters.


End file.
